A little bit of everything...

This weekend was by far one of the most fun so far here in Cape town.  After a fairly stressful week of papers and tests, I got a chance to do some really fun things and spend almost all of the weekend outside.

Luckily I don't have classes on Friday so I got to sleep in a little bit after spending my Thursday night out at Boogie.  Around mid afternoon Friday, my friend Ella and I hopped on the bus to SHAWCO…I've talked a little bit about this before. But almost every Friday I go out to a township in Manenberg and tutor/play games/run around with a bunch of 1st-3rd graders.  This past Friday, we didn't have a lot of volunteers and it was a beautiful day out, so we spent most of the afternoon doing arts and crafts and playing games outside.  The kids were adorable as usual…at times a little rowdy…but still really adorable.  At one point I think I had 4 little girls trying to put my hair in what I think were braids…..or just lots of knots.  Ella got all the kids singing Bruno Mars which was rally cute. Most of them speak Afrikaans, so my newly developed Xhosa skills were essentially useless.  But most of them speak English pretty well, so its pretty easy to communicate (even though they rarely listen to you).  Not going to lie, it was a pretty exhausting day, but I loved it.  It's awesome to spend time with the kids there.  They're so lovable and they're always hugging you and wanting to sit on your lap.

That night a bunch of us went to dinner at Hello Sailer.  Its a really cute/quaint cafe in Observatory.  The food was amazing and we had a great time.

                                                                          (View from the ferry- the body of a giant)

On Saturday, the vodacom flats had a CAP. Basically every CIEE house or hall has to do a bunch of activities throughout the semester that help advance our cultural perspective and teach us more about South Africa.  So as a CAP, we went to Robben Island.  We spent the morning having brunch on the waterfront, then jumped on a ferry over to the island.  (I will say the ferries here in SA are a lot faster than the ones to Nantucket and MV).  The museum on Robben Island was pretty cool.  We took a bus around, stopping at a few places and looking at various sections of the jail.  We saw where Nelson Mandela stayed during his time there and got to talk to a former prisoner, Cipo, who told us a ton about what it was like to be a political prisoner there and some of the things they did to pass the time.  Although the museum was slightly underwhelming, it was interesting to hear about some of the experiences that Cipo went through.  One of the main  things I remember him saying was how even though a lot of these political activists were stuck in jail, they still did an incredible amount of learning and discussing politics while in their cells.  They would get together in groups, headed by leaders who would gather speeches and information that were put together by figures like Mandela and read them aloud.  The experience overall was intriguing, and Cipo was so informative.  Currently about 200 people live on Robben Island….almost all of them being staff members of the museum and their families.

(Mandela's cell)

(on the jail grounds)

Friday and Saturday were really fun and interesting.  But today kind of took the cake.  Five of us woke up early and went sand boarding at a nature reserve at Atlantis (about 40 mins outside of Cape Town).  Its basically just a huge region of beautiful white sand dunes.  You can look out into the distance and see Table Mountain, Signal Hill, and Lion's Head.  Sand boarding is basically like snowboarding but on sand.  I have never done either before, and that eventually proved to be pretty obvious.  We started out on some bunny hills (they weren't so bunny to me).  The first few times, I thought I did surprisingly well.  I didn't fall and managed to get down the hill safely.  But then we moved up to the more advanced hills, where i truly succeeded in showing my true colors.  I took a couple wipeouts, but nothing too serious.  Although it took a while to get the hang of things, sand boarding was one of the funnest things I've ever done.  The dunes and the views were gorgeous and getting to do something new was exciting.  Basically all of the girls I went with are essentially pros at snowboarding, so I was a really the only one out of my element.  But thats okay, it was amazing.

(A view of Table Mountain from the dunes)

(Alex, Rob, Perri, Jordan, and me)

After sand boarding, we went to Clifton Beach down by Camps Bay.  After a week of lots of rain and books, it was so nice to just relax in the beautiful weather.  The water there is pretty freezing.  However, we were so hot and sandy from earlier that day that my friend Jordan and I said to hell with it and took the plunge.  It took a second to get used to but was totally worth it.  I think that Cape water can be just as cold, but everyone else thinks otherwise.  After an afternoon in the sun, we finished the nigh off on Kloof Street at Hudson's.  Its one of the few places here that sells Coronas.  I don't think anything could remind me more of summer in Chatham than spending the day in the sand and drinking coronas.  It was a really great finish to the weekend.

(Clifton Beach)

This week we finish up our first half of the semester.  Spring break is next week and we are off to Botswana/Victoria Falls.  I will probably be buried in some books as I finish up midterm papers and tests, so blogging will be limited. 

More to come after spring break.

Weekend in Stellenbosch

This past weekend, a few of my friends and I went to Stellenbosch for a few days.  We stayed at this pretty cute little B&B in town called Rivierbos.  We got to town Thursday night and had a nice dinner at a really cool outdoors restaurant that had amazing pizza and wine.

On Friday we spent the day doing a wine tour.  We ended up visiting 5 different vineyards, tasting about 6 or 7 different wines at each one. The first place we stopped at was one of my favorite places.  They told us the story of the Bridal cup, and Robin and I volunteered to drink out of the cup together (see picture and link).   One of the places we stopped at is actually known for being the oldest vineyard in South Africa.  Another was was the first vineyard in Africa to be owned by a female....this was fitting because Friday was actually National Women's Day (A national holiday here). The wine tasting was awesome.  I learned about what kind of wines I do like and ones I don't.  I am definitely a red girl (one of few among my friends).  My favorite wine of the day was a Pinotage that we tasted at lunch time (I forget what exactly it was called).  I learned that the pinotage is actually indigenous to South Africa and is only bred here. I'll have to smuggle a few bottles home to Boston.  

Robin and I drinking out of the Bridal Cup

http://www.german-toasting-glasses.com/bridal_cups/nuernberg_bridal_cup_story.html

Our tour guide was this really sweet older woman named Eileen.  She was awesome.  She knew so much but didn't try to overdo it in talking too much about each wine.  She says that you should never worry about being judged for the type of wine you chose to drink "You like what you like."  She was a very pleasant woman and the perfect guide to spend the day with.  Needless to say, by the end of the day a bunch of my friends were singing "Come on Eileen."  Aside from the 6 of us, we were also joined by a cute young couple. They were so nice and definitely embraced the idea of having to spend the day with 6 twenty year old gals.  They were really fun and made the day even more entertaining.  

Rissa, Rach, Perri, Rob, Jordan and our lovely tour guide Eileen

The wine tour was incredible.  It was a ton of fun and actually so informative.  Now I can go back to the Goose and have a better clue of what i am talking about when I recommend wine.  Stellenbosch is a beautiful place and I can't wait to go back.

That night we ended up going to a bunch of different bars in Stellenbosch.  The atmosphere there was definitely a little different than Cape Town, but it was fun to try something new.  

Sorry my post is short.  It's been a busy week with school work, but this weekend should bring more.

Gardens, Sunsets, and a little Boogie

This week was what dad would refer to as wicked pissah.

Classes were pretty uneventful.  Nothing big with the exception of my first Xhosa Test.  I am lovin Xhosa.  Even though my clicks are a little rough around the edges, its so fun to be able to talk to the locals.  I practice all the time with some of the waiters and waitresses at cocoa wah wah (awesome cafe next door), our two security guards Abu and Z, and our flatkeeper Grace.  All of them consistently giggle at me when I try to speak but I still keep doing it. 

On Monday night Robin, Rachel and I went went to Fight Night at the gym.  Its kind of like a kickboxing class.  Obviously Rachel was crushing it.  Unfortunately I don't think the instructor was too impressed by my high kick form as all his attempts to adjust my footwork failed. You would have thought all the basketball over the years would have improved my technique.  But it was really fun and I am going to try to continue doing the classes twice a week.  

I was fairly sore after the workout, but surprisingly not nearly as sore as I have been after my African dance classes.  We've already started our routine and we have to perform in front of all the students at the end of the semester.  I'm a little nervous since it's hard for me to continuously remember all the moves.  I kind of have enough trouble on the dance floor as is. 

On Thursday night, a bunch of us went to this bar called Boogie.  It was by far one of my favorite nights out here in cape town.  They play mostly 80s music and it was so much fun.  It was like a flashback to middle school dance parties.  

On Friday night my friends and I spent the night down by the V&A waterfront.  We started of the evening taking a sunset champagne cruise.  It reminded me of the CBI boat rides we take each year for Dad's birthday (which is coming up soon and I will be sure to celebrate in your honor here in South Africa).  A sailboat took us out into the open water and the views from there were beautiful.  You could see both Table Mountain and Lion's Head.  My favorite views thus far have been of the city of Cape Town at night.  Everything is lit up and its unbelievable.

(The Waterfront)

 (A View of Lion's Head)

Saturday was a pretty chay day.  My friends and I got up and went to Old Biscuit Mill, as we do basically every Saturday morning.  This place is legit awesome.  Its like no farmer's market I've ever been to.  There are just booths upon booths of the most amazing food and drinks from all the local places in Cape Town.  

After spending a few hours there and indulging in hot dogs and hard cider, we all went to the Kirstinbosch Botanical Gardens.  Mum you would be in heaven.  The gardens are gorgeous and it was one of the most tranquil places I've been.  It was nice to kind of get away and spend the afternoon in such a beautiful place.  We brought snacks and books and kind of just lounged out in the gardens for a while.  We walked around before we left and the flowers, the animals, and the views were so cool.  The Botanical Gardens are basically at the foot of the mountain so while you stroll around you can look up and see all the trees and gorgeous views. INCREDIBLE

This coming week is looking to be a lot more academic than adventurous so blogging might be limited.  But we do have a long weekend coming up so more updates soon.